Lisa Kallai - January 28, 2008

Sharing Story

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Um, have you told your story to the children, grandchildren?

Uh, they made us write our stories. Now for, whether I told the children yes, so for my eightieth birthday they, sort of, they, they threatened that they would bring in somebody who would write it and rather than that I write it myself.

So but you haven't talked to them about it?

Not systematically, you know, questions crop up or something but not...

Have you spoken to other groups...school groups?

On, on one occasion I was asked to talk about the Kindertransport, which I did.

To a school group?

Seminar...teacher seminar.

What did you tell them about the Kindertransport?

I showed them bits of the film...at least I tried to, the projector didn't work. But I told them more or less factually just...but the story about the baby I did tell them and, and uh, tried...I think what appealed to them or what shocked them was when I talked about the difficulty the parents had to face at that stage because it was 1938, they didn't know yet it was going to be so terrible and yet they had to decide to send the children away. And I noticed that that really got to them and it was something they hadn't thought of.

Do you think they were courageous in sending their children away?

I think so, I think so. I think that they were very courageous because as I said in 1940, '41 it would have been easier...the decision would have been easier but in '38, '39 it required foresight and courage.

And others must have been critical of that decision that they were sending their children away.

Yes.

Um, I'm, I'm, I'm sort of fascinated you were already scheduled for an Austrian Kindertransport.

Yes.

So then you think your father had made that decision.

Well, my mother always told me that she objected but my father insisted.